Garmin Forerunner 305 GPS Receiver With Heart Rate Monitor
by Garmin
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Garmin Forerunner 305 GPS Receiver With Heart Rate Monitor
Customer Review: Amazing
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought this product with some trepidation, after reading the mixed reviews on Amazon.com, so I made sure that my supplier had a good return policy. However, I have to say that it is an amazing piece of equipment, and kudos to the people that developed it. Sure it has some kinks that I am prepared to put up with, bearing in mind that this technology is in its infancy (especially at this size). I am training for my first marathon and I have found the forerunner to be great for logging and keeping track of my runs and my overall progress. Sure the real-time pace is not hugely accurate, but I feel very confident that it keeps very good track of my distances and overall pace for each of my runs (if I do an out-and-back run, the plotted course and calculated distances are very close). As I do most of my weekday running in boring suburban DC neighborhoods, it is liberating that I don't have to do the same measured route every time to keep track of my pace. I can wander at will, and head towards home when I am getting close to my desired number of miles. The virtual running partner is a great motivator. How else can you get a running partner to start the run at the same time and place as you and to run at a constant pre-set pace? It was a little annoying when I was ahead of him/her and needed to wait to cross the road; meanwhile I watched him/her passing me out!! I tried the auto-stop function for the first time this weekend, it worked ok, but did have some kinks...maybe it was because of very heavy rain and lightening we were having. The heart rate monitor seems to work fine. I have found signal strength to be no problem (I live in DC area, not sure it that makes any difference). My neighborhood has plenty of trees and the parks that I run in are heavily forested (its summer here). As I drove into the park this weekend during the storm my satellite radio kept losing signal under the (very wet) tree cover, but the forerunner seemed to work fine (except for the autostop). I wish their maps were more detailed, they just have the major streets, I guess Garmin chose to provide a stripped down version.....they should have done a better job there. Overall, as a technophile, I love this piece of equipment, and look forward to seeing how they improve it in the future. You do need to understand the limitations of this device though (e.g. somewhat accurate real-time pace information, undercounting overly twisty routes). I guess I am lucky that I have had no problems with it so far (it has only been a month), but I will update this if I need to call their customer service.Customer Review: Great product but still in its infancy
Summary: 3 Stars
No doubt, this product is headed for greatness, but as it stands now, it still needs some serious debugging and improvements by Garmin. So unless you are a "serious" runner/biker and can't live without workout data, you might want to wait for the next edition. Here are just some of the real problems with the unit:
1) Leave the unit on and the next time you run/bike you will find yourself without battery. It's happened one too many times now, and I've missed recording some important workouts. There is no auto-shutoff, which would really be huge improvement for a power-hog like the forerunner. After all, it should be easy for it to detect that you are not moving!
2) You have to tell the unit if you are running, biking, or in multi-sport mode. If you are using the forerunner for just one sport you will be OK, but I use it for running and biking and have forgotten to switch the setting a few times now. Surprisingly, there is no way to tell that unit that you were running instead of biking or vice-versa AFTER you have finished the workout, not can you do it when you import the data into the PC.
3) Sinking of the unit with your PC is not as smooth as you might think. I've lost data several times now to the point that I have to back-up all my data everytime in case the unit decides to wipe-out all my previous workouts. And I get mysterious USB-issues (unit not recognized) every-so-often.
4) The software on the PC is nice, but way too buggy. Not sure if this is Microsoft or Garmin. But it is annoying. After all, it is not really doing that much. Some user-post processing would be nice too. Invariably you will get some "wrong" data that goes off the charts (like speed). Would be nice to correct or eliminate bad data in the software, but there is no such functionality.
5) Finally, I've had it happen a few times now: I've accidentally hit the stop button while running/biking only to discover the fact a few miles later. The start/stop button is located in a good position as far as I can tell, but clearly too sensitive. If it happens to me, it will happen to you. It's annoying to miss data, particularly if the whole point is to collect data to improve your workouts.
I use the forerunner for all my running and biking, but I've yet to record an error free week. This after having the product for approximately 3 months now. I might not be a genius, but I'm no dummy either. And anyway, who has time to think, when you are on a 60mi ride or a 12 mi run? My general suggestion: wait for the next version (405?).
Customer Review: Superb Product, Excellent Design, Exceeded My Expectations!
Summary: 5 Stars
Just an absolutely superb product!
I bought mine from Amazon.com, and it arrived in record-breaking speed, packaged extremely well.
Regarding the watch unit itself, I did research for a very long time on all the models that are currently available in the United States, from pretty much all of the manufacturers, not just Garmin. My search included a price-point from $69 up to $650.
I could say many things, but in the end, I just want to say if you are on the fence, go ahead and get the 305. You definitely will not regret it!
I love this product!
Pros:
1. I find the slightly larger size of the face to be PERFECT FOR READING WHILE RUNNING. Any smaller and I might not be able to comfortably read the screen.
2. The heart rate monitor is actually very comfortable, as is the watch itself.
3. I liked how quickly and easily the heart rate monitor synced with the wrist unit. I basically put the HRM strap on, and turned on the watch, and it synced.
4. The data interfaces seamlessly with Google Maps- even on Windows 7 64 bit. You just select from a "drop down" menu, "View in Google Maps", and then Google Maps opens up with your data plotted right on the screen. You can hover your mouse over the waypoints (updates every 1 second), and view what your time, distance, heart rate, and pace was.
5. EXTREMELY simple to get started with the basic features, and be working out in minutes (except for one thing, which I'll mention below- which is barely a "con", but it should be said).
6. I got a GPS fix on the 305 in about 25 seconds right out of the box. That is faster than my $300 automobile GPS unit.
Cons:
1. Needs to be charged for 3 hours out of the box when it first arrives! GAAHHHH! I wanted to just strap it on and go running, but I had to wait. I know, this isn't really a complaint, but I can't think of any negative things to say about this thing.
2. Alright, maybe just one thing that is SLIGHTLY negative: It is just a little bit complicated to master all the features. But as I said above, it is extremely simple to start using its most simple features. After the 3 hour charge, you can go on your first run in 3 to 10 minutes of shuffling through the manual- including using the heart rate monitor, the GPS feature and course tracking.
On a scale of 1 to 100, I would give this a 99. It would be a 100 if I could have selected or modified the color scheme.
Customer Review: Fantastic Workout Tool
Summary: 5 Stars
This watch is great for anyone that wants to get more out of their workout. I purchased one, and within a week, had to purchase a second one because my wife was jealous and wanted one for her workouts. We really like getting back and seeing the map of where we've gone and how fast we went. Of course, you can get the optional foot pod (for runners) or cadence sensor (for bikers) to do indoor training with the GPS turned off.
The watch is a larger than a standard Timex, but it fit my arm just fine. My wife had a harder time because of her smaller wrist and ended up getting a Velcro watch band for it at REI that works better than the rubber one that comes with the device for her. It does come with a longer band for those with bigger wrists, as well as a tool for removing/installing the band.
Garmin bought MotionBased.com and is transitioning user accounts to Garmin Connect, which should speed up the website. I had some trouble with the MotionBased.com site (I'm a free-edition user) being sluggish and not responding, but Garmin Connect responds immediately. These websites provide great information about your workouts that can be shared with anyone on the internet. The included Garmin Training program provides some information that the MotionBased site does not (including calorie count), so it will be neat to see what happens when the two are integrated.
Satellite acquisition does take a little longer than I would like, even standing in the middle of an open field, but I do enjoy watching the acquisition screen to see all of the available satellites as they connect - a la the old Garmin GPS III, IV, and V systems in the early days of GPS.
I use it for cycling, and my wife uses hers for running. The watch does well with distinguishing between the two. She sets hers up for heart rate zone training and gets a warning if she exceeds her target HR. I, on the other hand, just take off, anxious to get back and see all of my date downloaded on to the computer.
The price seems to have come down because of the new Forerunner 405, but I bought the 305 because of negative reviews on the 405. There is a new 300-series watch being released that is about twice as much as the 305, but it works well for triathletes and has better water resistance. Overall, the Forerunner 305 works great for any athlete that wants to get a handle on their workout data -- it's like having all of the information of a treadmill computer combined with GPS tracking on your wrist.
Customer Review: Not Ready for Prime Time
Summary: 1 Stars
I am not Dr Mark. I signed in under my ID and for some reason it is listing this as from Dr. Mark. I don't have time to figure it out, so sorry Dr. Mark - I'm not trying to assume your moniker.
I have owned the Garmin Forerunner 305 for just over a month. I am trying to get back into shape after years of being sedentary and my trainer wanted me to get a heart rate monitor. Despite the fact that there are several good and functional monitors well under $100, as a gadget freak the Forerunner was very attractive.
First, the thing is big. I guess it has to be to fit in the electronics, but I am actually a little self concious wearing it because it is so big that it looks a little pretentious - maybe in a year when I'm buff I won't mind.
Next, the screen, despite its size, is difficult to read in both sunlight and low light. I find myself having to almost stop my activity to hold it in the exact position where I can read it. That simply isn't compatible with a good workout.
While I freely admit that I'm no rocket scientist, I am a pretty good gadget freak, and I still have to refer to the manual for some features. It is not very intuitive to navigate for me.
Lastly, the thing takes too long to acquire satellites when you start it up. When I'm ready to go - I'm ready to go. Under the best conditions I have to wait a couple of minutes for it to acquire the satellites. Since it won't let you go to other screens until the satellites are acquired, you can't set the timer, so you either wait for it - or start your activity - and then have to stop to set the timer because it is difficult to see the screen and reset it while moving. The time to acquire satellites is especially frustrating when traveling. One of the things that attracted me to the gadget was that I could "capture" the track of my outings when traveling. As a practical matter, unless I want to go to the parking lot and boot it up 10 minutes in advance, it misses the first 10 or so minutes of my outing while it acquires the satellites. Then I have to stop my activity so that I can see the screen to reset it - you get the picture.
I own a Garmin Nuvi, and love it, so I know they know how to get it right. While the idea is cool and maybe one day they will figure it out, this thing is not ready for prime time yet and I regret the purchase. I'm going to just purchase a cheap polar and throw this thing in my box of worthless gadgets to donate to a museum some day.